Ryals had noticed a funny smell in his Kensington Avenue apartment, located on the city’s west side, but he hadn’t thought it was the water. Sure enough, when he turned on his kitchen sink, the smell wafted out of the faucet, he said.

“When you open the faucet, you can smell it in the house,” he said, comparing the stench to rotten eggs.

For about a week, United Water customers in Jersey City and Hoboken have noticed their water smells and tastes funny, but the city’s water provider says the water is safe to drink.

United Water spokesman Steve Goudsmith said it’s not uncommon for reservoir levels to be low at this time of year, especially considering the lack of rain this summer. And when reservoir levels are low, the water can have “taste and odor concerns,” Goudsmith said.

He added that the water is still safe to drink.

“This is not a water-quality issue. It’s an aesthetic issue,” Goudsmith said.

United Water is flushing hydrants in Jersey City and Hoboken to help eliminate some of the foul-smelling water, he added, while it plans to take water from a different part of the city’s reservoir.

Residents could also keep some tap water in their refrigerators to help eliminate the bad taste, he said.

“Putting it in the fridge and letting it chill a little bit should help the situation,” Goudsmith said, adding that the water does not have to be boiled.